Events & Activities

Vanka Block Party

Sunday, April 19, 2026

FREE: All ages & abilities welcome

Join us for the 4th annual Vanka Block Party, a free community event featuring local food and drink, music, art making, tours, and more! Check out our events and activities and let us know you’re coming →

Sponsors include: WESA/WYEP, Mac Miller Fund of The Pittsburgh Foundation, ClimaTech, Bates, Barksdale, Ickert & Co., Becky Kretschmann, Q Development, Clark Hill, Orie & Zivic, Croatian Fraternal Union of America, EvolveEA, Meyer Unkovic & Scott, & USW Local 3657. 

Would you like to support this incredible event? Email Anna Doering at adoering@vankamurals.org 

Vanka Lecture Series

“Something of the Narod”: Croatian Immigrant Church Murals Before and After the Johnson-Reed Act

with Heidi Cook

Sunday, May 31, 2026 | 3-5pm

In 1909, Croatian artist Oton Iveković traveled from Zagreb to paint murals for St. John the Baptist in Kansas City. Three decades later, recent immigrant Maxo Vanka began his masterwork at St. Nicholas in Millvale. Despite working at opposite ends of the Rust Belt and in vastly different political climates, both artists and parishes used these sacred spaces as platforms to engage directly with the contemporary discourse on immigrant identity and rights.

Following the lecture, attendees are invited to continue the conversation in the Church Hall (basement) enjoying light refreshments featuring Millvale and “worker-inspired” favorites.

Learn more about the Lecture Series.

Vanka Lecture Series

Into the Furnace: Croatian Immigrants in Pittsburgh

with Michael Secilia

March 22, 2026 | 3-5pm

This talk surveys the history of Croatian immigration to the United States. We’ll explore themes of Croatian folklife, the forces of migration, and adjustments to life in industrial Pittsburgh.

Michael Secilia is a born and bred Pittsburgher and professor of History and the Social Sciences. His research interests include Croatia & Croatian American History.  He volunteers as a docent for the Vanka Murals and appreciates every opportunity to share and discuss the marvel of this sacred space.

Following the lecture, attendees are invited to continue the conversation in the Church Hall (basement) enjoying light refreshments featuring Millvale and “worker-inspired” favorites.

REVERENCE:

GIFT TO AMERICA 2.0: Closing Reception

March 19, 2026 | 6-8pm
Frick Environmental Center

Join us for an informal closing celebration of our first-ever collaboration with the Frick Environmental Center. This is your final opportunity to experience the Gift to America 2.0 (GTA 2.0) exhibition: a powerful dialogue between contemporary works and the historic Vanka Murals.

This exhibition celebrates and demonstrates reverence for art, history, humanity, and nature.

Meet the Artists: GTA 2.0 commissioned artists Sheila Cuellar-Shaffer, Fran Flaherty, Juliandra Jones, and Lily & Ahmed Ragheb will be in attendance to discuss their practice and commission experience.

Enjoy light refreshments and art-making activities as we celebrate art, history, and our shared humanity.

A Feast for the Murals

March 13, 2026 | 4-8pm

Indulge your senses with an evening of food, art, community, and music at the Vanka Murals. Enjoy a special dinner menu from Sprezzatura featuring both pescatarian and vegan options. In the sanctuary, Jennifer Baron of The Garment District/The Ladybug Transistor will be spinning Croatian records from her grandparents’ collection of original 78s, along some new finds, including 45s and LPs, while local artist Maggie Negrete creates zines for an all-ages scavenger hunt of the Murals.

Be among the very first to experience a sneak peek of our NEW Immigration Tour! Our expert Vanka Tour Docents will be stationed throughout the sanctuary to guide you through the powerful stories within the Murals during this special Open House. Consider this your private preview before the official public launch on March 28, 2026

Galentine’s Day: Love Letters

February 13, 2026 | 6-8pm
Frick Environmental Center

Celebrate Galentine’s Day with us at the Frick Environmental Center for a heart-forward evening of creativity, connection, and nature-inspired joy. Through conversation and guided artmaking, we’ll explore themes of love and belonging while creating in community—letting friendship spark one-of-a-kind cards to keep for yourself or send to someone special. While you’re here, be sure to visit our Gift to America 2.0 exhibition, Reverence, and let the experience deepen your inspiration.

Each registration includes all necessary art materials and light refreshments. The two-hour session will take place at the Frick Environmental Center, combining classroom artmaking with an exploration of the Gift to America 2.0 exhibition featuring contemporary artists in dialogue with works by Maxo Vanka. Participants are invited to bring their own collage materials if they’d like. 21+

Creative Happening:

Collective Radiance

A free community program for all ages

Sunday, January 18, 2026 | 1-3pm
Frick Environmental Center
2005 Beechwood Blvd, Pittsburgh, PA 15217

Families are invited to take part in this hands-on art activity inspired by Fran Flaherty’s chandelier installation and the Vanka Murals Gift to America 2.0 project at the Reverence: Gift to America 2.0 exhibition. Visitors of all ages can help assemble and interact with chandelier elements and playful silhouettes drawn from Vanka Mural imagery, adding their own creative touch to an evolving artwork. This drop-in activity encourages shared making, imagination, and joyful collaboration across generations. All ages and abilities welcome. Children should be accompanied by an adult.

Fran Flaherty is the creator and co-curator of Anthropology of Motherhood, Assistant Professor of Digital Art and Emerging Media and Director of FabLab at Carlow University. As a first-generation immigrant mother from the Philippines and a Deaf artist, her work explores migrant family relations, maternal feminism, disability aesthetics, and social connection through the care paradigm—the idea that human survival depends on love, kinship, and interconnectedness.

This program is made possible through funding from Arts, Equity & Education Fund.

Holiday Family Program

December 29, 2025 | 4-5pm

Join us for a festive, family-friendly 60-minute interactive tour crafted for young children and their families to explore history and art together. Set amidst the season’s lights and decorations, this multi-generational experience brings the Vanka Murals to life with hands-on activities for all ages.

After the program, enjoy refreshments in the cozy church basement and connect with other families. All ages welcome, with up to three adults per child. Admission is “pay what makes you happy” which may be made in advance or at the door. Advanced registration is required.

Holiday Lights Tours

December 26 – 31, 2025

Holiday celebrations continue with the one-and-only Vanka Murals!  Enjoy pre-tour performances and a 60-minute docent-led tour surrounded by the splendor of the season.

Discover the stories behind these striking works—painted in 1937 and 1941—and how they reflect the lives of working-class Pittsburghers and be among the first to see the awe-inspiring results of recent conservation.

Guests will also be treated to homemade Croatian Cookies, and special merchandise.

Make a visit to the Vanka Murals part of your holiday traditions!

These Walls Can Talk

Poetry Reading & Community Art Inspired by the Vanka Murals

Sunday, October 19, 2025 | 2-4pm

Join us for an afternoon where words and art intersect, inspired by Maxo Vanka’s powerful murals.

Writers from Carlow University’s Madwomen in the Attic program will hold a public poetry reading, sharing work inspired by the murals’ themes of justice, labor, immigration, and motherhood. This special event is the culmination of their fall course, “These Walls Can Talk,” a collaboration with the Society to Preserve the Millvale Murals of Maxo Vanka and Anthropology of Motherhood.

A Creative Space for Everyone

While the poetry readings are happening upstairs, the church hall will host an all-ages artmaking space. Vanka Educators will lead hands-on activities, perfect for kids (under 5 must be accompanied by an adult) and anyone who wants to create.

GLEDAJ! Sketching

Vanka’s Views of Pittsburgh

Sunday, September 14, 2025 | 10:00am – 2:30pm
University Art Gallery, University of Pittsburgh

In 1935 and 1937, Maxo Vanka took advantage of extended stays in the region – including when he was painting his famous murals in Millvale – to observe and sketch Pittsburgh. For this sketching session, we’ll return to sketch in the shadow of one of Vanka’s favorite buildings: the Cathedral of Learning.

Join us for a sketching workshop inspired by Vanka’s views of Pittsburgh led by local artists: Kate Lundy, John Martine & Suzanne Werder. We’ll start with a behind-the-scenes look at drawings from the Vanka Collection and related works from the UAG Collection with UAG director and curator, Dr. Sylvia Rhor.

Vanka Block Party

Sunday, April 27, 2025

FREE: All ages & abilities welcome

Join us for the 3rd annual Vanka Block Party, a free community event featuring local food and drink, music, art making, tours, and more!

Made possible by the generous support of the Jack F. Buncher Foundation.

Check out photos from the event

A Feast for the Murals

Friday, March 28, 2025

Indulge your senses with an evening of food, art, community, and music at the Vanka Murals. Enjoy a special dinner menu from Sprezzatura featuring both pescatarian and vegan options. In the sanctuary, Jennifer Baron of The Garment District/The Ladybug Transistor will be spinning Croatian records from her grandparents’ collection of original 78s, along some new finds, including 45s and LPs, while local artist Maggie Negrete creates zines for an all-ages scavenger hunt of the Murals. Vanka Tour Volunteers will be on hand to guide you through the stories of the Murals in this Open House.

Creative Happening

Love Letters

Sunday, February 2, 2025

A new way to engage with the Murals! Explore Maxo Vanka’s stunning work on an interactive tour, as we draw connections to Vanka’s depictions of love for humanity and justice.

Use this inspiration to create your own love letter as you craft and create one-of-a-kind cards to keep for yourself – or send to a loved one.

Each registration includes all necessary art materials and light refreshments. BYOB and art supplies welcome.

The two-hour session will take place inside St. Nicholas Croatian Church, both in the sanctuary and the Church Hall.